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I 



THE ART OF 
HOME FURNISHING 
AND DECORATION 



12£ 



By 
FRANK ALVAH PARSONS 

President, New York School of Fine and Applied Art 

Author of "Interior Decoration — Its Principles and 

Practice," Etc. 



Published by 

ARMSTRONG CORK COMPANY 

LINOLEUM DEPARTMENT 

LANCASTER, PA., U. S. A. 



^h^' 
n 



Copyright 1918 by 
ARMSTRONG CORK COMPANY 

Linoleum Department 
Lancaster • Pennsylvania 



S *i M *"C* -*S'»* (>Mu 

,,--*- ■-,- smog 

apr sc ma 



FOREWORD 

Frank Alvah Parsons, President of the New York School of Fine 
and Applied Art, is the foremost American authority on interior 
decoration. H e long since has amply demonstrated his wonderful 
faculty for turning his knowledge to the common good. We 
know of no man who, with voice and pen, has fought harder or 
more unceasingly for better taste, for richer, fuller home life. 

Mr. Parsons hardly can seem a stranger to the average reader 
of this book. Indeed, through his writings and lectures, he has 
become guide and counsellor and the personal friend of thousands 
of refined men and women, who have accepted the idea so well 
developed by Mr. Parsons in the following pages, that "Man is 
what he lives in; " that, generally speaking, man can be no greater 
or no less than the daily environment in which he works, thinks 
and lives. 

We take great satisfaction and pleasure in announcing Mr. 
Parsons as the author of that section of this book which is entitled 
"The Art of Home Furnishing and Decoration." It is written 
in Mr. Parsons' typically intimate and forceful style, and every 
paragraph is replete with information and suggestions of great 
value. We are sure that this book will hold your interest from 
the first to the last word, and that in the end you will look on 
the possibilities of your home and your life within it in a fresh 
and considerably enlarged perspective. 

After you have spent an hour with Mr. Parsons on the general 
theme of home furnishing and decoration, we believe that it 
will profit you to read what is written by ourselves in the latter 
part of the book on the specific subject of linoleum and its rela- 
tion to the principles that Mr. Parsons has laid down. 

ARMSTRONG CORK COMPAJNTY tii 



THE ART OF HOME FURNISHING 
AND DECORATION r^a****™™ 

Man is exactly what he lives in, for environment is the strongest 
possible factor in man's development. One may be so long 
among loud noises, bad odors, inharmonious colors and wrong 
arrangements of things that one doesn't mind them, because one 
has let them become an integral part of one's self. They are 
there, and they are as bad as they were at first, but one has 
become immune to them. This being admitted, it follows, of 
course, that concordant sounds, agreeable odors, harmonious 
colors and pleasing arrangements have their immediate effects, but 
their tendency is toward refinement, culture and artistic appre- 
ciation instead of toward brutality, ignorance and indifference. 

It is certainly not hard to see what effect is produced by living 
in any wrong environment. As a person accustoms himself to 
it, he becomes like it. When he is like it, he will admire only its 
kind, and whatever he does will be as nearly like his environ- 
ment as he himself is. 

The importance of thoroughly comprehending this truth cannot 
be overstated. The mental and artistic quality of the nation 
and even its physical comfort depend upon it. This viewpoint, 
being somewhat new to us, accounts for the upheaval in our 
ideas of what a home really is. Looking a little into this matter 
may perhaps stimulate us still further in our thinking, which will 
affect our way of doing whatever we attempt in the future. 

In the first place the home is the center of all 

The Home Molds life's activities. We are born there, and long 

before we have seen the shop, the office, the 

church or even the school, our first impressions 

of the fundamentals of life have become fixed. These are 

exceedingly hard to efface. 

The school can hardly hope to counteract in the child's mind the 
effect of hearing incorrect language spoken at home for six years; 
the church is greatly handicapped in its influence where wrong 
principles of life have determined habits during the first years; 

5 



the artistic sense is practically dead and refinement of taste 
impossible in that child whose parents have given the usual 
wall papers, rugs, hangings, pictures and other objects of modern 
furnishing a chance to do their unrestricted work. Most of these 
have been made to sell, but not to people who use any judgment 
in buying. Occasionally we think of the durability or the com- 
fort of an article, but how seldom of the colors, the patterns, 
the combinations of different periods with different meanings, 
all of which unite to make an unthinkable, inharmonious jumble 
which produces a reaction on an impressionable person little 
short of criminal. This being the case, is it any wonder that 
we are satisfied with inferior things or that we cannot compete 
with other nations in creating better ones? 

This view of the home as an educator places it above any other 
institution in life and makes it worthy of the most careful and 
scientific study from several points of view. It might be well 
to consider here four of the most important of these. 

The first requisite of a house is physical com- 
fort. Not only is this true of each article of 
furniture, but it is true also of the placing of 
each piece as it relates to the other pieces. 

Take, for instance, a divan, a chair, a table, a lamp, some books 
and a footstool. It is not enough that the chair, the divan and 
the stool should each be comfortable to the body, but comfort 
demands that each be so placed that one can use the divan or 
chair with the stool, while the books on a table with a lamp are 
placed so that one may lounge or sit and read without effort 
and without expending energy to assemble what is required. 
The best possible arrangement, you see, demands more skill 
than at first appears. 

,, Mental comfort is even more important to man 

Home Must . ■. . ■, , , i • i c „l tt 4. 

- Mind in nome * nan physical comfort. He must, 

or should, find in his home an intellectual 
stimulus and a refining influence to complement the activities 
and struggles of his life outside, to calm and rest the tired nerves 
and to relieve the material or commercial stress which threatens 
6 



entirely to destroy his power to see or know anything else. 
Unconsciously driven by this need he rushes from home to the 
club, to the theatre or elsewhere for diversion, amusement or 
rest. This is not as it should be, for in the right environment 
the home should furnish the rest and intellectual refreshment 
needed. Let us consider that there must be an expenditure of 
thought and skill in furnishing a home if it is to play its rightful 
part in the scheme of life. 

,, Even then, there is another thing to consider. 

Home Must Be . ,. . ° . . 

A man may succeed m accomplishing wonders 

in the realm of physical comfort, yet so com- 
pletely ignore the question of sanitation as to menace the health 
of his family, if not to offend their sense of decent cleanliness. 
The horrors of Victorian plush upholstery, chenille portieres and 
nailed-down carpets are still fresh in the memory of some of us, 
and we have not yet been able to get a clear idea of a really 
clean thing because of the bad impression made on us by these 
conditions. Probably we never shall, until we succeed in effacing 
their memory by discarding the traditions they represent and 
adopting wholly different ideas in their places. Let us think of 
the question of sanitation as a second necessity in considering 
any household problem. 

r tl Tli* ^ * s P erna P s unnecessary to look at this mat- 

Not Always^est ter ^ rom *^ e vi ew P om t of economics, but to 
me it seems very important. We cannot all 
afford to buy everything we see, desire or even appreciate. 
Realizing this, we lose enthusiasm and take almost anything. 
This is not necessary, nor is it wise. Good things are not all 
costly, nor are all cheap things equally bad. One might also 
add that frequently very costly things incline to be bad; at any 
rate, there is far greater danger of their being so because of 
the greater opportunity they afford for the expression of bad 
taste. 

Knowledge furnishes the greatest defense against bad things in 
any form. The more one knows, the more capable he is of 
selecting the best for his money and of using his selections in 

7 



such a way as to suggest that much more was paid for them 
than they really cost. 

Intelligent selection — the art of buying the 
ne most appropriate furnishings and decorations 
Enjoyable for the home— leads logically to intelligent dec- 
oration, the art of arranging the furnishings 
and decorations so as to make possible a thoroughly attractive 
home and keenly enjoyable living for the family. 

The introduction of the word "Art" always opens up a new field 
fraught with unpleasant possibilities. So many things mas- 
querade under this name that we are almost deceived as to 
what it really is. Shall we not attack and dispose of some of 
these fallacies before attempting to see what it actually is? 

Because it is an art to decorate we are apt to think that anything 
attached to or hung on to another thing is decoration, therefore 
artistic. Nothing could be further from the truth. Principles 
control decoration, and decoration is only possible when it con- 
forms to these principles. In order to be decorative there must 
be something that requires decoration; that is, which is incom- 
plete in itself. As soon as material of any kind is added after a 
thing is complete, the result becomes an aggregation, not a 
decoration. 

Most houses belong to this class because the owner refuses to 
stop when he is done. He may also have erred through having 
no place to decorate, his background being of such a kind that, 
struggle as it might, nothing could compete for attention, there- 
fore could not become decorative by contrast. Simplicity in 
backgrounds is the foundation of decorative possibility. 

Oversentimentality is as bad as overdecoration. 

Sentiment is not only commendable but is an 
sentimentality ,. . . , ,, , . . , 

essential element that makes for human 

decency, but sentimentality, which by most people is thought to be 

the same thing, is unpleasant and unhealthy. Admiration, 

affection, veneration — each of these qualities has its place with 

all of us in its particular situation. This is well; but when, 

through association, we mistake an impersonal object for the 

8 



real qualities of a person and begin to bestow adoration on it, 
then it is time to stop and think. 

To be sure, one respects some things in his grandfather and his 
other forebears. He is not insensible to the excellent points in 
his friends and associates. But if he is a wise man, he does not 
apply all his grandfather's good qualities to all the furniture he 
uses, nor the excellent points in his friends to all the objects 
they have felt impelled to give him at one time or another for 
some sort of reason. If half the rubbish in every house in Amer- 
ica that exists for solely sentimental reasons or because of a fear 
of being detected in its destruction were to be burned now, the 
next generation would have a much clearer vision of what art is, 
unhampered by sentimental misconception. 

A sentimental and an aesthetic feeling are quite distinct from 
each other. Who is there among us who does not love nature? 
The trees, the birds, the flowers — they seem to be a part of the 
great Divine scheme which calls for especial appreciation. This 
is also well; but nature is not art, neither is man's imitation of 
it. Sometimes his interpretation of it is art, sometimes it is 
not. Not infrequently his conventionalization of nature and its 
adaptation to the material in which it is to be used become a 
decorative art; yet, even if this is accomplished, the thing may 
be spoiled in the use, and an inartistic whole may result. Just 
and reasonable homage to nature has impelled people to try in 
all sorts of ways to imitate it. This is not art. Art is creation, 
not imitation. One has but to reflect, and amazement must 
result when one realizes to what this impulse has led in every field 
of expression. Flowers have been painted on everything known, 
from the kitchen floor to the plush sofa pillow. The more like 
nature these decorations have appeared, the more artistic they 
were thought to be, when the truth was actually the reverse. 
The more natural these are, the more inappropriate they are 
as seen from any viewpoint. 

Art is Creative ^ no * s there that would not hesitate to sit 

down on, or put his foot on, a perfectly natural 

rose or lily? Where is there a human being that would care to 

lie down on a pillow with the painted face, even of an Indian, 

9 



in the center? Who can see nature insulted in various objects 
by the sticking-in of pins or the driving-in of nails? The whole 
thing is too simple. Nature has its place, but it is not art, nor is 
the imitation of it art. 

This is so intimately associated with another fallacy that it 
should suggest it without comment. The appetites of man are 
ever insistent for attention. The desire for food, drink, shelter 
— these are physical appetites. They make their assertions 
naturally, and when normally treated bear their relation to the 
rest of life. But neither these nor the sensations attendant on 
them are art, nor should these senses be confounded with the 
artistic sense. 

Apples and pears look well on trees, in suitable receptacles or on 
tables. They are to eat. Imitations of them painted on plates 
seem to win admiration at once for their likeness to the real thing. 
The saliva flows in the mouth, the digestive organs begin their 
natural functions, and, while our sensations are purely physical, 
strangely enough many think this artistic. It is the hunger ap- 
petite being appeased, not the aesthetic. 

The atrocities committed in this field are innumerable. Exact 
copies of everything, from a bunch of grapes to an ostrich, 
may be found in one winter's millinery display, while the real 
or copied forms of everything, from a dried fish to a gigantic 
moose head, may be seen in one dining-room at one time. This 
is not art. It is natural history and botany illustration in 
museum effect. 

The hardest thing in the world to combat is a 
universal belief in the infallibility of pictures. 
These are necessary to convey ideas and they 
have a function to perform. They are interesting, they may 
even be amusing, but they are by no means always artistic. So 
great has been the belief in and admiration for pictures, that we 
have, as a nation, pretty nearly surrendered to the idea that 
drawing and picture-making alone are art. No greater mistake 
than this has ever been made. There are a thousand more bad 
pictures than there are good ones and a hundred bad ones used 

10 



in houses where one good one appears. This is because we seem 
to have a kind of fear that there may be a vacant place on the 
wall and also because the picture idea has become a mania. 

" Silence is golden, " but a blank space on a wall is often diamonds 
and emeralds compared to one filled with the average pictures 
that are hung, not to mention their frames. What shall we say 
of this phase of human dissipation, particularly when the frames 
in question are gilt ones? A person who allows himself to deco- 
rate his house with picture frames instead of pictures should be 
expected to hang his wardrobe in the front hall for the same 
purpose. The results of this mania should not be charged up 
to the credit side of art. Rather, the man afflicted with it is a 
slave to tradition. 

For the most difficult thing in the world is for a person to change 
his established way of thinking or of doing anything. It is so 
much easier to think as one's grandfather did and to do as one's 
father did than it is to think and do for one's self. For this 
reason we are somewhat handicapped in getting at the essence 
of art and its practical applications to ordinary life. If mahogany 
was the favored wood in the last half of the eighteenth century, 
of course it is a good idea to use it for anything, anywhere, for- 
ever afterward, even though a much better substitute is at hand. 
If floors were hardwood or soft wood or stone, or even plastered 
with Oriental rugs bearing no relation to the rest of the house, 
there seems to be no reason why people should change the rugs 
or have another kind of floor. 

Examples of this adherence to tradition are so frequent and so 
deadly that to cite more would be a waste of time. Traditional 
belief that antiques are always good or that the work of some 
particular man is forever praiseworthy or that some particular 
article should always be used in some established way, has 
blinded us to the possibilities in the right use of new things in a 
progressive way. All this hinders a clear perception of what 
art really is. 

If these things which have been misnamed art are carefully 
removed from consciousness permanently, it is easy enough to 

11 



see what art is, and then it becomes almost an unconscious 
process to apply it, whether the application is made to the 
house, to clothes or to other personal forms of expression. 

Art is Expressing In the first place, art is creation. It is the 
personal expression of the individual in any 
material or combination that completely con- 
veys his conception of what he is trying to project. 

This connection generally expresses a need which he himself 
feels. It may be for a house, a living-room, a divan, a hat, a 
footstool, a typewriter or an automobile. In any case, there is 
a need for something for a particular use. This need should 
be the reason for the art expression. Spurred on by the need, 
a man creates something which will fill the need. 

This need is both functional or material and mental or artistic. 
One bar to seeing what art is rests in not recognizing this two- 
fold element in it. Insofar as one is able to make a chair that 
fits the body, fulfils its special function as a dining-room chair, 
or a study chair, he has succeeded in creating the first artistic 
element. An object which does not do honestly and truthfully 
and sensibly what it purports to do cannot be artistic, no matter 

Art is Beauty The second element that enters into art is 
appearance or beauty. This element or quality 
is a little more difficult to define because it is relative, just as 
heat is, or as goodness is. What seems warm to one seems cold 
to another; what seems good to one may be bad to some one 
else; so, then, the standard of beauty depends entirely upon one's 
own conception of it. This does not mean that anything that 
anybody considers beautiful is so, any more than it means that 
it is a warm day when the thermometer is at zero because some- 
body does not feel cold. It simply means that the person who 
judges may or may not have a right mental standard of what 
beauty really is. This standard may be acquired approximately 
by anyone, for it is determined by certain principles. If the 
principles of harmony are understood and applied, beauty will 
result. 
12 



Take, for instance, the problem of a particular 
The Function of room# The first question to ask one's self is: 

"What is this room for?" If it is a dining- 
room, it is a place in which to eat in peace. If it is a living-room, 
it is to live in and should have a quiet, restful, refined and other- 
wise pleasant atmosphere. If it is a bedroom, it is to rest and 
sleep in. From whatever standpoint the room is viewed, the 
question of use comes first. Anything in the dining-room that 
interferes with eating in peace is in bad taste. Whatever appears 
as decoration in the living-room that is unrestful, tawdry, com- 
mon or unessential, is inartistic. If the bedroom contains any- 
thing that is out of tone with its general spirit, if it contains 
anything that makes for other than an atmosphere of calm 
contentment and deep, sound sleep, it should be removed at 
once. Let this point of view spur us on to make an investiga- 
tion of our houses — room by room — and alter or remove every- 
thing that strikes a jarring note. 

Let us start with the bedroom. Are there spotted fabrics or 
papers on the wall, the spots on which one involuntarily counts, 
even after going to sleep? Are there a half dozen small pictures 
in black frames against a white background, so hung that 
successive steps are formed which resemble the front hall stairs? 
Are there other diverting and disturbing arrangements in the 
room that seem to invite us to close our eyes to avoid further 
annoyance? Much can be done in house decoration by elimina- 
tion, and the strongest argument for this process will be found 
in submitting each room to the test as to the performance of 
its proper function. 

These elements, fitness to use and beauty, which 
when combined make what is called the art of 
quality, must be made comprehensible by facts 
and truths which can be expressed in a language form that all may 
learn to understand. This art language is made up of color, form, 
line and texture, and depends for its efficiency on a knowledge of 
the principles which govern it and upon an appreciation for the 
niceties in its use. Anyone can learn the principles and will 
grow in appreciation as he makes a right use of what he knows. 

13 



Of the qualities mentioned, color is the most interesting; at 
least, it is the easiest to see. At the same time it is the most 
misused. This is much too small a space in which to demonstrate 
with any thoroughness the color language idea, but two or three 
of the most important facts must be emphasized. 

Nothing is more personal than color and 
Color to Express notnin S admits of expressing personality with 
Personality clearer or more manifest charm. The normal 

colors — yellow, red, blue, green, orange and 
violet — may be used in illustration of this statement. 

Color has its source in light, and natural light comes from the 
sun. Yellow looks most like the sun, as it expresses the quality 
that the sun seems to give out. From the sun we are cheered, 
made light-hearted and receive new life. Yellow in a room 
should, under normal conditions, produce the same feelings 
where it is the basis for the wall color or is used in curtains or 
in other spots. Red suggests blood and fire. It is associated 
with activity, aggression and passion. It heats and stimulates. 
One who fails to react to color is not normal or is immune from 
overcontact, while one who simply likes or dislikes a color and, 
therefore, uses it or never does, misses the real chance to express 
ideas. If one prefers red, there is no proof in the fact that 
makes it incumbent on him to live surrounded by it. He may 
be erratic enough without it, or possibly he doesn't need a stimu- 
lant. Need is the fundamental question rather than liking. It 
is a question of what one ought to have. 

It is interesting to know that the aggressive quality of red 
makes a room in which it is used smaller in appearance, and 
there are times when this is not desirable. Its warming quality 
is not needed in hot climates or during a warm season. 

Blue has an opposite effect from red. Its reactions are restraint, 
coolness, repose and distance. By association one thinks of a 
clear blue sky and the cool breezes from the blue waters of the 
ocean. This makes blue a suitable antidote for hot weather and 
a temperate force, useful in modifying some people's dispositions. 
Green, which is a union of yellow and blue, expresses the quali- 
14 



ties of both. Nothing could be more restful, soothing and 
agreeable than the cheering and cooling effects of a seat in the 
shade upon the green grass under luxuriant green trees, in the 
middle of a hot day. It is easy to see the practical application of 
this in decorative art. 

Violet or purple has the qualities of red and blue, while orange 
has the qualities of yellow and red. It is interesting to study 
the natural reactions shown by people of all ages and conditions 
to these colors as environments under different mental conditions. 
Incomplete as these suggestions are, they are probably sufficient 
to establish the point that personal qualities or individual 
character traits can be definitely expressed in color terms and 
that antidotes for an excess of certain qualities are just as possi- 
ble where a knowledge of color exists. 

There is a second color quality that we must not ignore. If I 
think of one group of colors containing light pink, delicate blue, 
lavender, canary yellow and white as representing one idea, 
and dark crimson, heavy, dark green, blue with a rich, dark 
purple and black as another group, I have a basis for compari- 
son. If my problem of expression is the qualities that we gener- 
ally attribute to youth, or the proper colors for a young girl's 
bedroom, or for the lighter and more delicate things in life, I 
have no hesitation in choosing the first group. If, on the other 
hand, the problem is one of clothes for a person of mature age, 
or a color scheme for a library in an old English house, or some 
other problem in which the qualities required are dignity, quiet- 
ness and stability, there should be no question as to the prefer- 
ence for the second group. 

This quality of light and darkness in color is called value and 
must not be forgotten in using color as a language. 

There is no doubt that the third quality, called intensity, is the 
most important of all to a right understanding of interior deco- 
ration. This quality determines how brilliant or how forceful 
a color tone is. Softer and less aggressive tones are called 
neutral or neutralized colors. The most important question in 
using color decoratively is that which relates to the distribution 

15 



and correct placing of neutralized colors in their relation to 
the more intense ones. The grossest errors in the whole realm 
of color used in decoration are committed in this field. One 
or two principles that relate to this matter must always be 
carefully observed: "Backgrounds should be less intense in 
color than objects that are to appear against them in any deco- 
rative way." From this it obviously follows that walls, ceilings 
and floors of houses must be less intense in color than hangings, 
upholsteries, small rugs, pictures and other decorative material. 
This is one of the most important points to remember in every 
color problem. 

There is a corollary to this which is equally important: "The 
larger the color area the less intense it should be, and the smaller 
the area, the more intense it may be." According to this prin- 
ciple, hangings and large rugs must be less intense in color than 
sofa cushions, lamp shades and decorative bits of pottery and 
other materials. Keeping this relation of areas in mind is an 
aid in selecting any article for the house, as well as a help in 
choosing those things that are concerned with one's personal 
appearance. A red necktie is more appealing than a red suit, 
so is a red flower or ribbon more decorative on a black hat than 
a gray one would be on a red hat. 

The slightest attempt at using color must disclose its power to 
express personality, its natural value feeling and its decorative 
dependence upon a proper distribution of intensities. 

While the principles of form are a little less 

se o rm apparent in their illustration to most of us 

to Express Ideas ** , ... . ... 

than color, yet they are no less important m 

producing a harmonious whole. One of the first premises of 

decoration is the assumption that there is a definite form or 

shape upon which a decoration is to be applied. The direction 

of the bounding lines of this form determines the direction of 

the principal lines of the decorative matter which is to be applied 

on it. 

The bounding lines of a floor are generally straight and at right 
angles to each other. This fixes several important points regard- 

16 



ing the disposition of rugs and furniture. Rugs that are placed 
at all sorts of angles on the floor and by their positions bid one 
go in any direction save the one he started to take are among 
the most disconcerting and distracting lines in a room arrange- 
ment. Place all rugs in accord with the bounding lines of a 
room and harmony is at once restored. 

One must conform to this principle also in placing furniture. 
Most pieces should be parallel with the sides of the room, even 
though they are not against the walls. Curved line chairs or 
other small objects sometimes lend themselves naturally to a 
diagonal placement. Care should be taken in grouping furni- 
ture to give the appearance of harmony with the room structure. 
Let us look after the piano that is placed catacorner in the 
living-room and the bed, in the same position, in the bedroom. 

It is not unusual to see pictures strung over the walls in such a 
way that the line indicated from the top of one to another is a 
zigzag that illy suggests harmony with the structure of the wall. 
Triangular picture wires are ugly and distracting. Unless a 
picture is small enough to be hung with an invisible attachment 
at the back, it should be hung with one long wire passed through 
two screw eyes, one at each top corner of the frame, with one 
wire paralleling each side of the frame and going over a hook 
above. This not only harmonizes the wire with the frame, but 
with the doors, windows and the room structure. 

The choice and arrangement of essential materials in the room, 
so far as the aspect of beauty is concerned, will be treated in 
detail later on. 

The principle of consistently related shapes 
and sizes finds scores of applications in the 
p arrangement of a room. Who has not won- 

dered what to do with a round clock, when 
everything else adjacent to it was either square or rectangular 
in form? Where is there a house in which there is not a round 
or oval picture to be placed, or a chair of wholly curved lines, 
where all others are straight? The attempt to place one isolated 
round object on a wall is generally a failure, because there is 

17 



nothing to relate it to any other nearby lines. Oval and curved 
objects must be repeated by others similar in form in other 
positions in the room if they are to become in any sense a part 
of the design. 

The second part of this principle — consistent sizes — is even 
more important and far-reaching than the first. To the architect, 
the decorator or the creator of any art object, this is a vital 
matter. Every interior, as well as exterior, architectural feature 
is thought of in relation to every other One in the matter of size. 

It is not uncommon to enter a room and find a chimney large 
enough for an Elizabethan banquet hall, while the room itself, 
in size, suggests a city flat. Nor is it less common to find a table 
or divan of gigantic proportions being required to live in harmony 
with chairs or other articles of various pigmy types. These 
unusual and unhappy relationships cannot conform to the prin- 
ciple of consistent sizes. 

In our use of hangings, upholstery, rugs, etc., the lack of feeling 
for consistent sizes is still more often apparent. Before dis- 
cussing this, let us look for a moment at patterns and motifs 
as they are used in textiles, wall papers and rugs. 

For some unknown reason we have come to believe that there 
is no beauty in anything in which there is not a pattern plainly 
visible, forgetting that three-fourths of all wall and floor spaces 
are backgrounds on which to show other more important things, 
including people, who have some right to be exploited even 
against wall paper. There are some phases of the motif running 
through a design, that may be considered here in some detail. 

There are three distinct varieties of motif. First, the motif 
which aims to reproduce identically a natural object. Such 
things are rarely successful. The second is known as the abstract 
type, where the motif is of a form and color not derived from a 
natural source, being a matter of space and line arrangement, 
often resulting in geometric forms. The third, known as the 
conventional motif, takes a natural thing and attempts to 
translate it into form and color suited by its appearance and feel- 
ing to some particular material in which the design is developed. 

18 



In the conventional design, beauty is attained by harmonizing 
the motif with the material on which the design is made, while 
the naturalistic motif strives to represent some natural thing and 
takes a chance on its being appropriate in the material in which 
it is to be rendered. Harmony in motifs means, first, a relation 
in this particular, from which it follows that a rug or floor which 
is entirely geometric in pattern cannot be used successfully 
with hangings which show a purely naturalistic design. 

Another opportunity for harmony is found in consistently 
related motifs as to size and shape. It frequently happens that 
the floor motif, for example, is small and delicate in size and 
refined in line treatment. If a person is naturally sensitive to 
color rather than form and he finds a rug or hangings pleasing 
in color, he is often satisfied. For harmony in relationship, 
however, he must ask if the motif in the rug and that in the 
hangings are consistent in size and shape with the floor and 
wall motifs. 

A third principle of form is known as balance. 
This is the principle of arrangement whereby 
attractions are equalized and through this 
equalization a restful feeling is obtained; that 
is, a feeling of equilibrium or safety. It is somewhat discon- 
certing to enter a small room and find a black piano across one 
corner and a delicate Hepplewhite chair in the opposite corner. 
One instinctively rushes to the aid of the chair. Attraction 
may be of color, size, shape or texture, and one learns only by 
constant practice to see and feel the attraction forces in different 
objects used. 

There are two types of balance to consider. The first one, 
known as bi-symmetric balance, is the equalization of attractions 
on either side of a vertical center by using objects the same size, 
shape, color and texture. This is formal, dignified and safe, 
but lacks in some ways the delicacy and subtlety resulting from 
an attempt to get a less formal placing. Consider a vertical 
line drawn through the center of a chimney-piece placed in the 
middle of a wall space. On either side of the chimney-piece and 
equally distant from it may be placed two pictures similar in 

19 



size, form and color, and the result is bi-symmetrical. If two 
similar candlesticks are placed one at either end of the chimney- 
piece and equidistant from the end, with a portrait in the center, 
there is still bi-symmetric arrangement. So long as this arrange- 
ment is maintained, bi-symmetry results. 

A second kind of balance is known as occult balance. This term 
is used to signify that the balance is rather felt or sensed than 
exactly determined. If the same vertical line is drawn through 
the same chimney-piece, one picture is placed a certain distance 
from the left and two smaller pictures of unequal size are used 
on the right to balance this. The two pictures must be so placed 
that their attraction equals that of the larger one at the left. 
Similarly, if one large porcelain jar and two or three other articles 
are to be used, there must be a feeling of equal attraction on 
either side of the vertical line. 

To explain briefly the primary laws of balance we may give the 
rules: "Equal attractions balance each other at equal distances 
from the center." And, conversely: "Unequal attractions bal- 
ance each other at unequal distances from the center." 

A third and a little more complicated law is stated as follows: 
"Unequal attractions balance each other at distances from the 
center which are in inverse ratio to their powers of attraction.'* 
Translated, this means that objects with the strongest attrac- 
tions tend to gravitate toward the central line, while less attrac- 
tive ones tend to draw from this line. 

The application of the rules of balance not only to objects on 
the wall, but to the furniture when seen against the wall or 
against the floor, is essential to room composition. It is also 
essential that the floor, in its general appearance, should bear 
a balanced relation to the walls and to the hangings. 

There is no better place, perhaps, than at this point to make 
clear the relations of these three bounding surfaces. The ceiling 
should be unobtrusive, but keyed in color to the rest of the 
room. A perfectly white ceiling, except in a white room, or 
an over-ornamented ceiling anywhere is an annoyance to him 

20 



who would see his friends or furnishings. A too-aggressive wall 
paper or other wall covering makes a bid for attention quite out 
of proportion to its rights as a background, while aggressive and 
over-assertive floors or rugs are in bad taste, particularly when 
they assume the prerogatives of the hostess in their attempt at 
attraction. 

The ceiling should be about as much lighter and less attractive 
than the walls, as the walls are lighter and less attractive than 
the floor. This is a balanced arrangement of ceilings, walls and 
floors. 

Operating exactly opposite to the principle of 
s balance is one known as movement. This is 
calculated to cause unrest, excitement and 
similar sensations, by creating an interest 
which causes the eye to move from one thing to another. It 
is very desirable in many cases that movement, particularly of 
a violent type, should not occur. Allusion to stair arrangements 
in picture hangings has already been made. This is not con- 
ducive to sleep. Erratic crawling vine patterns, creeping up 
the curtains or the wall paper, are a little suggestive in the early 
morning hours if one chances to awake. Violent contrasting 
lines, created by bad furniture placing or by spotted wall papers 
or floor covering, also become tiresome and disturbing, except 
to those who by long contact with such things have become 
immune to their influence. Even such may suffer a subconscious 
disturbance, though they do not realize it. 

There is a certain monotony attendant on the continual presen- 
tation of one sound, one color or one form, for mental considera- 
tion. On the other hand, there is a complete disorganization of 
the powers of the human mind if a host of colors, forms or sounds 
are presented at one time. If one is poverty, the other is cer- 
tainly gluttony, and neither should be accepted. It is through 
a judicious selection and arrangement that sufficient variety is 
obtained to give pleasure, while restraint results in making life 
humanly possible. It is very rarely that we err on the side of 
simplicity, but it is not at all unlikely that we may become 
flagrantly sumptuous, with an uncomfortable, tawdry result. 

21 



The principle known as emphasis is one which 

;e r? nly we mus * regard as important. In a bedroom 

in S 8 one ought to see a bed; it is vastly more 

important than the picture exhibition hung 
about it. In a dining-room a well-set table is the emphatic note, 
not the chenille curtains nor the products of the chase hung upon 
the wall. In the living-room the easy-chair, the divan, the book- 
case, the beautiful portrait, lamp or picture — all these things 
should be emphasized by color, form or line, that their importance 
as related to other things in the room may be apparent at sight. 

Knowing this to be true, is it not strange that we still find people 
who are willing to emphasize the wall paper or the floor or the 
unpleasant ceiling decorations, to the absolute exclusion of any- 
thing else that may have to be used in the room? The relation 
of background to decorative objects cannot be insisted upon 
too much. 

The final principle of form is known as unity. 
In this limited discussion only a word can 
[*° U8e be said of it. A room is a unit, so should a 
house be. It is impossible to look with equa- 
nimity from an Old English dining-room into 
a Louis XVI sitting-room. These styles are 
very far apart in their meaning and can only be harmonized by 
those who know how, when, where and how much of each 
element to use. 

It is just as impossible to make a unit out of a mixture of Fif- 
teenth, Seventeenth and Nineteenth Century furniture, unless 
one knows how. Every article used in furnishing a house not 
only has its conventional value, but its design also. If one knows 
thoroughly the exact meaning and power of a Louis XVI chair, 
an Elizabethan table, an Italian console or a William and Mary 
bookcase, there is no doubt that these may be used successfully 
in one room. 

There are so many considerations in such a problem that it is 
insufficient to choose single objects for their value alone. Each 
thing must be chosen with a clear understanding of what room 
it is to go in and with what other things it is in the future to 
22 



be associated. A failure to do this will certainly result in pande- 
monium. 

What shall we do with the things we have? Use them if we have 
to, destroy them if we are willing to — at least eliminate every- 
thing that is nonessential. The pernicious practice of giving 
everything one learns to dislike or that has become worn out, 
to the poor, does more to prevent them from enjoying a personal 
growth than any other one thing. 

Perhaps no better way to think of the principle of unity can be 
suggested than to quote the definition of an eminent Nineteenth 
Century historian: "A unit is that to which nothing can be 
added and from which nothing can be taken without interfering 
materially with the idea itself." 

The question of texture as a form of expres- 
sion must not be omitted. Texture is that 
quality of an object which seems to convey 
the idea of how it feels. It is a combination 
of a degree of solidity, strength, roughness, coarseness, etc. One 
finds this quality in the grained effects of wood, in the weaves of 
different textiles, in the appearance of braided straws, and even 
in feathers and other materials. 

It is this sense of fitness in textural feeling that forbids the use 
of hard, harsh-grained oaks with the finer textures of mahogany 
and satin-wood. Disregarding this quality, people often com- 
bined the coarser, heavier and more-resisting woolens or linens 
with soft, impressionable and destructible silks or fine cottons. 
Harmony in the texture quality cannot fail to contribute to 
harmony in the finished unit. 

Such is the language of art expression in color, form, line and 
texture. The principles which govern the right selection and 
combination of all materials that go to make a house are the 
real guides to growth in artistic appreciation. 

r* jm . iL Good taste, which is the final criterion in all 
Good laste the , . ■ ... ' -, . . , , 

art, is cultivated or improved in most people 

by a constant study and application of the 

principles which control artistic expression. 

23 



Should we not, all of us, do well often to take time to remind 
ourselves of certain great established principles and to endeavor 
constantly to see more clearly and completely the principles 
that govern the expression of these truths? Thereby we may 
unconsciously form habits of thinking and of doing things^that 
will not only make for broader and better personal growth, but 
will contribute to a higher type of national civilization. We 
have not to worry if all the powers of science are not directed 
to the development of so-called efficient service, in lines that 
are wholly material and commercial. 

We are extraordinarily committed to this propaganda, as a 
people, and we might ask ourselves whether we may not be 
developing this idea at the expense of mental and spirtual ideals 
that, after all, are the real things that not only determine what 
we actually are, but are the only things that are truly perma- 
nent. Life is certainly something beside machinery, raw mate- 
rials and money, even granting these to be essentials. 

If we will acknowledge this dual claim of commercial materialism 
and a better mental or spiritual ideal, we shall find no difficulty 
in seeing that materials can only be refined and made better in 
quality through their possession of the art quality, and this art 
quality is only a harmonious relation of each of the elements used 
to express any idea, in any field in which a man is working. 

Perceiving the desirability of the art quality results generally in 
an effort to possess it, and that entails immediate action in two 
distant ways. First, go out to find the simple, fundamental 
principles that control the language of color, form, line and 
texture; second, apply these principles at once in the home, in 
the shop, in clothes, in printed paper or in any concrete thing 
where interest and possibility are found. Through every appli- 
cation growth is assured. 

Let us again remember that man is exactly 

of Environment wna * ^ e ^ ves * n > * or eny i ronmen t is tne 
strongest possible factor in man's develop- 
ment. Let us not forget that what man really is, is what his 
mind is, and this he must express in all he does. 

24 



This places the importance of the home where it deserves to be 
and makes its furnishing one of the most serious and at the same 
time one of the most delightful things in life, never for an instant 
minimizing what has always been desirable, but vastly enlarging 
and ennobling the idea for which it stood. 

In recognizing anew the part art is to play in this matter, let us 
not forget that it in no way interferes with the three essential 
qualities that are inevitably factors in every home problem 
simple or elaborate, as the case may be. 

Perfect physical comfort is necessary, if only from the stand- 
point of more efficient service on our part and the relief it brings 
us, not to be constantly thinking how hard the bed is, how 
uncomfortable the chair seems, or how rough and uneven the 
floor feels. Art in no way interferes with physical comfort; 
in fact, it demands it, as an element of the eternal fitness of things. 

The nation is awake to the power of cleanliness as a factor in 
making an efficient physical, and thereby, indirectly, a finer 
mental being, as a contribution to modern civilization. Every 
article selected for the home should have this requirement con- 
sidered. Including this in the art idea will remove the misappre- 
hension under which some people labor, that art implies disorder 
at home, a dowdy or unkempt person and a disregard of nature's 
most obvious laws. The first law of Heaven is order; it is no 
less so of art. 

Expense is the constant excuse of those who want better things 
but cannot afford them. There are as many bad expensive 
things as there are cheap ones. No home is too poor to have 
much better things, much better arranged, than it has, and no 
home is so rich that much of the furnishing might not well be 
publicly burned and the rest rearranged. 

Tradition binds most of us in absolute servitude. Let us not 
be afraid to try a new thing used in a new way. That makes 
for creative growth, which is art. 

From any standpoint, comfort, sanitation, economics or art, 
the home is to become the greatest moulding influence in human 
life. Shall we remain apathetic and indifferent to this most 

25 



vital problem satisfied to increase our bank account only, or 
shall we awaken now and contribute our mite to a fuller national 
life and a higher and happier existence? This certainly will 
not decrease our power to increase the bank account, but will 
enable us to do it with far less physical effort. 

Traditions have generally obtained in each 

° rSt WM ii g enera ti° n and fashion as to what materials 

should be used in various parts of the house 

and how to use them. The original ideas 

which went to establish these traditions or manners differed in 

their origins, but were always the logical outcomes of times in 

which they were developed. For instance, the walls of the house 

in the Italian Renaissance were of stone. Steel was not thought 

of and wood unsuited, while in American Colonial days wood 

was the most plentiful material and the quickest and easiest to 

handle in building in the manner in which the people lived. 

At various times climate, geography, religious and social customs 
and the developments of science or art have changed conditions, 
and with this, methods and materials have undergone similar 
changes. 

Floors, for example, have mostly been of clay, stone, tile or 
wood, dictated by one or more of the modifying influences of 
which we have spoken. Wood cannot take the place of stone, 
neither should it try to pretend to do so, but there is no denying 
that one is better than the other under certain conditions and 
that neither is the only good floor under all conditions. 

Linoleum as a floor is not a substitute for stone, wood, tile or 
clay. It is another material, recent in conception and suited 
to particular conditions, because of properties that neither stone, 
clay nor wood have in exactly the same proportions. 

Like other floors in modern houses, linoleum 
1 ought to combine the qualities of sanitation, 
I Desii-abI comfort, durability to fulfill completely its func- 
tions. When made to conform to these ends 
— as it does if properly designed, and then selected and arranged 
so as to harmonize perfectly with its surroundings — it is not only 

26 



suitable but desirable. Linoleum is sanitary, because the most 
obvious thing about it is the ease with which it can be cleaned 
and kept clean. 

Linoleum is comfortable, because it is soft, quiet and resilient 
underfoot. It is economical, because it is durable. 

In parts of Europe, the artistic possibilities of linoleum have 
been developed to such a degree that many fine homes are fur- 
nished throughout with floors of that material. There is no 
reason why, in this country, the development of the art sideNjf 
linoleum should not follow the general development of interior 
decoration. For patterns and colors, suitable for any scheme 
of house furnishing and decoration, seemingly can be produced. 

THE END 



27 



ARMSTRONG'S LINOLEUM 

FOR EVERY ROOM IN THE HOUSE 

While the principles and valuable suggestions on home furnishing 
and decoration, set forth by Mr. Parsons in the previous pages, 
are fresh in your mind, let us show you how well the idea of 
Armstrong's Linoleum for every room in the house fits in with 
all that you have just read. It will take only a few minutes to 
go over your whole house — room by room — and the facts you 
will learn will be exceedingly worth your while. Let us first 
step into the living-room. 

We start with the living-room first, because it 
shows the possibilities of Armstrong's Lino- 
leum at their best. The very name — living- 
room — suggests comfort, ease, and beautiful and artistic sur- 
roundings. You can procure Armstrong's Linoleum in patterns 
and colors that will harmonize perfectly with the walls, ceilings, 
hangings, furnishings and rugs. It will add distinctly to the 
comfort and livable qualities of your living-room, and it will 
make a floor there that you will be proud to show to visitors. 

Say that the wall is of panelled wood (or suitably papered), 
making an appropriate background for the tapestries, chairs, 
table, couch, bric-a-brac, lamps and rugs. In that case, you 
could ask for nothing better for your floor than one of the Par- 
quetry Inlaid designs, or one of the new Jaspe (moire) effects of 
correct color and pattern to match everything else in the room. 
(See Colorplates Nos. II and IX.) 

Such a floor looks like hardwood, can be polished like hardwood, 
but is more practical and less expensive than hardwood because 
it is easier to lay and easier to keep clean. It is just as durable, 
and is much more comfortable because of its quiet, soft resilience 
underfoot. Running an oil mop over it daily with an occasional 
waxing usually suffices to keep such a floor clean and sanitary, 
because it presents a smooth, unbroken surface with no cracks or 
crevices for dirt and germs. Recent experiments have shown that 
the linseed oil in genuine linoleum is poisonous to germs. It tends 
to kill practically all the species that cause dangerous diseases. 

28 



The hall is the first place that visitors see in 
your home. It must be kept specklessand 
spotless. Under ordinary conditions, that means constant 
sweeping, scrubbing and polishing — tasks beyond the strength 
and inclination of most women. But it is so easy to keep Arm- 
strong's Linoleum fresh and inviting that a hall floor composed 
of that material proclaims the neatness of the housewife to all 
visitors the moment they cross the threshold. Yet it is no tax 
on any woman to keep such a floor looking that way. (See 
Colorplates Nos. I and IX.) 

No matter what the decorative treatment of your hall, we remind 
you again that Armstrong's Linoleum will provide rich, polished 
floors in mellow tones that will harmonize perfectly with rugs, 
walls and furniture. The range of colors and designs for halls, 
dens, libraries, sun parlors or conservatories is amply wide for 
all purposes, all tastes. The durability of good linoleum is 
another factor. The number of footsteps it would take to wear 
it out could never be estimated, and dripping umbrellas and 
wet rubbers do not damage it. 

For the ^n attractive place to eat in is half the sauce 

Dining-Room to appetite and good digestion. You may 
enter such a room jaded, dispirited, with no 
desire for food. But if your sense of artistic fitness is gratified 
by the furnishings and decorations — if the general spirit of the 
room is one of invitation and good cheer — you are refreshed and 
re-stimulated. And you find yourself turning with real relish 
to your food and table companions. On the other hand, uncon- 
genial, disquieting surroundings are sure to have a depressing 
effect on your appetite and digestion. 

Here again, the problem is to relate the floor to the walls, the furni- 
ture, the rugs, and everything else in the room. Fortunately, how- 
ever, the widevariety of Armstrong patterns simplifies the problem 
with regard to any type of dining-room. The plain linoleums (with- 
out any pattern) can be had in tan, blue, green, brown, rose, light 
gray or dark gray. The Jaspe patterns show grains running through 
them as charming and fascinating as watered silk. The designs 
range from the simple and unobtrusive to the most elaborate. 

29 



Armstrong's Linoleum floors are smooth, and, of course, their 
sanitary and long-wearing qualities, and the ease with which 
they can be cleaned and kept clean, especially commend them 
for dining-room use. Remember that your servants, as well as 
yourself, will appreciate Armstrong's Linoleum floors throughout 
the house. (See Colorplates Nos. Ill and IX.) 

For the Bedroom 0n 0ne ° f the P recedin S P a § es of tnis book > 
Mr. Parsons has well pointed out that sound, 

refreshing sleep is most possible in a bedroom, the atmosphere of 
which suggests coolness, restfulness and perfect aloofness from 
the busy, noisy world outside. And he also points out that such 
a room should be softly beautiful and refined. And, of course, it 
is obvious that the room in which you sleep should be kept ab- 
solutely clean and sanitary. 

With these considerations in mind, you yourself must often 
have thought of linoleum as the natural, logical floor for a bed- 
room. For if the general furnishings and decorations are softly 
beautiful and refined, you can obtain Armstrong's Linoleum in 
colors and patterns that also are softly beautiful and refined. We 
call your attention particularly to the matting and carpet 
effects, and the Plain and Jaspe Linoleums in light shades of 
tan, gray, rose and blue. You will find linoleum not one whit 
colder than hardwood, since naturally you will continue to use« 
fabric rugs beside the bed, in front of the dressing table, etc. 

If the present coverings on the floors of your bedrooms are so 
hard to keep clean that they are seldom thoroughly cleaned, they 
are in themselves the most powerful argument for the cleanly 
and sanitary qualities of Armstrong's Linoleum that possibly 
could be offered. Remember also that Armstrong's Linoleum 
is relatively easy to install, and that in the long run it makes the 
most economical floor for every room in the house. (See Color- 
plates Nos. V and X.) 

For the Bathroom Water is always being spilled on the bath- 
room floor. It rots carpets and rugs. It gets 
into the cracks of tiling and in time may cause the tiling to come 
up. What is most needed in a bathroom, therefore, is a floor 

30 



that is proof against moisture, easy to clean, sanitary, comfort- 
able and exceptionally durable. And it certainly should not be a 
floor that you would be ashamed to show visitors. Rather it 
should not suffer from comparison with the floor of the room 
from which it leads. 

The designs of Armstrong's Linoleum which are offered for the 
bathroom combine cleanable, sanitary, comfortable, durable and 
beautiful qualities in the highest degree. (See Colorplates Nos. 
V and IX.) 

F , N Your first thought for the nursery, or children's 

playroom, is that it shall be sanitary. Most of 
the time, the children are running, romping, rolling or tumbling 
over the floor. If there are cracks and crevices there to hold 
dirt and germs, the health of the little ones is imperiled. But 
Armstrong's Linoleum is practically germ-proof and has no 
cracks for dust and dirt to lodge in. It is a tough, elastic floor 
that wears well under scuffling feet, that breaks falls, and that 
has no rough edges to damage dainty dresses. We want you to 
know the cheery, dainty colors and patterns especially designed 
for the children. (See Colorplates Nos. VI and X.) 

F , Many people do not consider a house complete 

a Parlor and nowadays unless it has a sun parlor and a 
Sleeping Porch sleeping porch. And here again, to secure a 
thoroughly satisfactory floor is a troublesome 
problem, but linoleum solves it nicely and economically. Laid 
properly (as explained further on in this book) linoleum is well- 
nigh waterproof, and the wide range of colors and patterns makes 
it easy to select a floor that will harmonize with the furnishings 
and trim. Granite Linoleums, which resemble terrazzo, or some 
neat tile effect, will be found especially pleasing in sun parlors. 
The colors in Granite Linoleums go through to the back. (See 
Colorplates Nos. VIII and IX.) The use of linoleum on open 
porches constantly exposed to the weather is not recommended. 

in ^ r .. , Spotless and sanitary are adjectives that asso- 

For the Kitchen ? ,, . ' , J .. , , 

ciate naturally with the nouns, kitchen and 

pantry. If your kitchen or pantry floor is the 

kind that requires frequent long and hard sessions with the 

31 



water pail and scrubbing brush, it is time that you changed to a 
linoleum floor. Occasional waxing, and daily wiping with an oil 
mop or cloth, keeps such a floor as spotless and shining as the 
proverbial Dutch kitchen (unless there is an unusual amount of 
dirt tracked in). And the bright, handsome Armstrong designs 
help to make your kitchen a more cheerful place to work in. 
And isn't that important for any woman who has to spend a good 
deal of her time there? If that woman happens to be yourself, 
your health and spirits will be the better for Armstrong's Lino- 
leum on the kitchen floor. If it is the hired cook or scrubbing 
woman, she will be all the more likely to be contented with her 
surroundings. As a final point, you know how quickly the average 
kitchen floor or floor covering wears out. For that reason, the 
exceptional durability of good inlaid linoleum is a point worth 
keeping in mind. (See Colorplates Nos. VII and IX.) 

For Vestibule ^ ^ e points just mentioned hold equally 
true for vestibule, laundry and closets. Arm- 
strong's Linoleum will provide floors that are 
comfortable underfoot, sanitary, durable and 
easy to clean. A wide variety of both inlaid and printed pat- 
terns is offered for such purposes. A few such are reproduced 
on Colorplates Nos. IX and X. Your local merchants can show 
you the complete line. 

The idea of installing linoleum floors all over 
in Europe * ne house is not new; it is one of the excellent 

hints on home building that has come to us 
from Europe. There for many years the material has found ready 
acceptance in bedrooms, living-rooms, dining-rooms, etc., not 
alone in homes of moderate means, but just as frequently in 
those of the rich and well-to-do. Foreign makers have catered 
especially to such uses, but beautiful as their patterns are, we 
confidently believe that for beauty, attractiveness and general 
utility, the Armstrong designs now available for every room in 
the house have never been excelled. Each year new effects are 
being offered, and the American housewife is rapidly coming to 
realize the advantages of linoleum floors from both an artistic 
and utilitarian standpoint. 

32 



By way of summing up, consider for just a 

moment what the qualities are that you really 

need and demand in the floors in your home. 

Certainly you want your floors to be durable. 

And is there any floor you can think of — cost considered — that 

can approach a good linoleum in wearing quality? Next, you 

demand sanitation. Do you know of any floor that excels 

linoleum in that respect? 

Most assuredly you want floors that are easy to keep clean. Have 
you not found linoleum easy to clean? And you must have 
comfort. Is not linoleum easy underfoot? 
But, you say, we must have warmth, too. Certainly you must. 
But you would hardly think of leaving the wood floor in your 
bedroom and living-room bare, would you? No, you use rugs. 
Follow the same course then with your linoleum floors, and you 
will find them equally as comfortable as hardwood. In fact, 
thickness for thickness, linoleum is a better nonconductor of heat 
than wood is. 

Then finally you demand beauty and economy in your floors — 
and justly so. As for color harmony, hardwood has distinct limita- 
tions. Shades of brown and tan are about the only colors that 
are available. But with linoleum, the range of colors and patterns 
is well-nigh unlimited, and your floors can thus be made an in- 
tegral part of your general color scheme. On this point, the color- 
plates that accompany this book speak for themselves. 

As to economy, linoleum floors of good quality are less expensive 
today than the cheapest hardwood. And they cost less to 
maintain, too. Given reasonable care and proper treatment, 
linoleum floors will last indefinitely, without the periodic re-fin- 
ishing that all hardwood requires. 

So you can see for yourself, once you analyze the subject, how 
remarkably linoleum does combine each and every one of the 
qualities you want the floors in your home to possess. 

Naturally we want you to be thoroughly satis- 
fied with every piece of Armstrong's Linoleum 
you put in your house — not only as to the wearing quality, but 

33 



in respect to the pattern and color as well. And since the selection 
of suitable linoleum floors to harmonize with different types of 
furnishings and color schemes involves the application of the 
principles of interior decoration, we have organized a Bureau of 
Interior Decoration with a thoroughly trained decorator at its 
head to answer any questions you may care to ask about the use of 
Armstrong's Linoleum in your own home. There is no charge 
whatever for this service. Write and tell us what your problem 
is, and we shall do our utmost to help you solve it satisfactorily. 

Linoleum was invented in England in 1863. 
The name comes from two Latin words, linum 
(flax) and oleum (oil). In other words, it takes 
its name from its principal ingredient, linseed oil. Before it 
can be used in making linoleum, however, the linseed oil must 
be oxidized by exposing it to the air until it hardens into a tough 
rubber-like substance. The oxidized oil is then mixed with 
powdered cork, wood flour and various gums and color pig- 
ments, and the resulting plastic mass pressed on burlap by means 
of great "calenders" that exert a pressure of hundreds of pounds 
to the square inch. The "green" linoleum then passes into huge 
drying buildings, called "stoves," where it is hung up in festoons 
forty-five feet high, to cure and season. This curing process takes 
from one to six weeks, depending on the thickness of the material. 

There are several varieties of linoleum, designated as follows: 

(a) Plain Linoleum — of solid color without pattern — the heavier 
grades of which are used for covering the decks of battleships, 
and hence are known as Battleship Linoleum. 
(6) Printed Linoleum, which is simply plain linoleum with a 
design printed on the surface with oil paint. 

(c) Inlaid Linoleum, in which the colors of the pattern go through 
to the burlap. 

(d) Jaspe Linoleum, which may be considered a species of inlaid 
linoleum, since the colors run clear through the fabric. It pre- 
sents an appearance somewhat like moire silk. 

(e) Granite Linoleum, which is also a variety of inlaid. It has a 
mottled appearance, resembling terrazzo. 

34 



On the colorplates accompanying this book are reproduced 
examples of each of these five varieties of linoleum, but these 
patterns do not by any means comprise the entire range in 
which Armstrong's Linoleum is manufactured. If you do not 
find a design to suit you among this assortment, your local mer- 
chant will be glad to show you the complete Armstrong Line of 
380 patterns. 

Armstrong's Linoleum is the product of the 
most modern linoleum mill in America. The 
ingredients used are carefully tested, the machinery is of the 
latest type, the operatives are workmen of skill and experi- 
ence, and the inspections are exceptionally rigid. You can be 
sure that any piece of linoleum that bears the Circle A trade- 
mark of the Armstrong Cork Company is of good quality and 
workmanship, built to last. 

Armstrong's Linoleum received the Grand Prize 
at the Panama-Pacific International Exposition 

at San Francisco — the highest possible award — conferred on no 

other brand of linoleum, foreign or domestic. 

Since there are substitute floor coverings on 
the market nowadays that look like linoleum 
on the surface, but which are merely felt- 
paper imitations, it is to your advantage to remember these two 
easy ways to tell genuine linoleum: First, look at the back and 
make sure that it is burlap. Second, try to tear it. Imitations 
tear easily. The safest way is to ask for Armstrong's Linoleum 
by name and look for the Circle A trade-mark on the back. 

First get in touch with the dealer in home 

furnishings with whom you are accustomed to 

trade. If he cannot show you an adequate 

assortment of Armstrong patterns, write to 

us, not forgetting to include the merchant's name and address. 

Then we shall do all in our power to help you solve your interior 

decoration problems and to supply your linoleum needs. We 

also shall do everything possible to see that in the future you 

can secure what you require through your own merchant. As 

manufacturers, we cannot sell direct to the consumer. 

35 



HOW TO LAY LINOLEUM 

Laid properly, linoleum will last for years, and if given reasonable care, 
will retain its attractive appearance indefinitely. Because it is to your 
interest as well as ours to see that your linoleum is well laid and receives 
proper attention, we ask you to read and note carefully the following 
directions: 

The laying of linoleum is not a simple task. It 
requires considerable experience before one learns 
how to cut the goods to avoid waste and how to lay 
the material so as to prevent the buckling and cracking that may occur, 
due to faulty workmanship. Therefore, it will likely prove cheaper in the 
end, and most assuredly will give you greater satisfaction, if you have your 
merchant's skilled workmen lay your linoleum for you, instead of trying 
to do the work yourself. 

There is only one absolutely satisfactory way to lay linoleum, and that 
is to put it down over a layer of heavy felt paper. Ordinary gray builders' 
felt, weighing Vy% pounds to the square yard, is the grade used for this 
purpose. 

All floors are subject to expansion and contraction 
Tie Advantages of caused by the variations in heat and cold in summer 

and winter. Wood floors often dry out, leaving 
cracks. This may in turn cause the linoleum to break or buckle. The 
heavy felt paper will take up this expansion and contraction, and positively 
increase the life of the linoleum floor. In fact, the linoleum will last much 
longer than if laid by unskilled persons in a makeshift manner. 

The felt layer acts as a cushion, deadens sound, and makes the floor 
warm and delightful to walk upon. The linoleum, moreover, can be 
removed from the floor, if necessary, with little trouble. 

LAYING LINOLEUM OVER FELT PAPER 

In putting down linoleum over felt, the felt is first cut into lengths to go 
across the short way of the room. The quarter-round floor moulding is 
removed and the felt fitted snugly at each end. A non-waterproof lino- 
leum paste is applied to the under surface of the felt, which is then rolled 
or pressed down until it adheres firmly to the floor. 

The lengths of linoleum are next placed in position crosswise to the 
direction of the felt strips, or the long way of the room. One piece is laid 
at a time. The surface of the felt under each strip of linoleum is well 
coated with the paste, except for four to six inches along each end and side, 
and along the seams, which spaces are left bare. The linoleum is then 

36 



put down and rolled. After the paste has begun to dry, the free edges 
of the linoleum are trimmed to fit neatly at all points. Then a waterproof 
linoleum cement (a kind of glue) is applied to the felt along all edges and 
seams, back under the linoleum for a distance of four to six inches, so as 
to keep out moisture. The linoleum finally is well rolled with a 150-pound 
iron roller, to insure perfect adhesion. 

Weights, such as pressed brick or sand bags, are placed one against each 
other, lengthwise, along all edges and seams to press the linoleum firmly 
against the felt while the cement dries. After twenty-four hours, the 
bricks are removed, and the floor is ready for use. The floor moulding is 
put back into place. The result is a neat, resilient, sanitary, waterproof 
floor. No little skill is required to do this work properly. The additional 
cost of having it done by an experienced linoleum layer is relatively small. 

A less satisfactory way to lay linoleum is to place it directly on the wood 
or concrete floor. Where a more or less temporary floor covering is desired, 
as in the case of tenants on short leases, etc., this method may be made 
to suffice. 

DIRECTLY ON WOOD FLOORS 

The floor should be perfectly dry and clean, the surface smooth and even. 
Cracks should be filled; nails should be removed; and the uneven edges 
of the boards planed off, if necessary. 

In cold weather, linoleum becomes brittle. If 
Handling unrolled when in that condition, it is apt to crack. 

Stand the roll of linoleum, therefore, in a warm room 
for at least 48 hours before using it. Measure the linoleum carefully, and, 
if possible, cut it to run in the opposite direction from the boards in the 
floor. This will tend to prevent long cracks, due to slight unevenness of 
the floor boards. 

After it has been tightly wound in the original roll for weeks or months, 
it requires some time for linoleum to assume its proper shape, and when 
laid flat on the floor it must be allowed to "grow" or expand; otherwise, it 
may "buckle" or crack. To provide for this expansion, proceed as follows: 

First, remove the quarter-round floor moulding from 
Remove the baseboard all around the room. Then cut the 

Floor Moulding linoleum, trimming it from y± to ^ inch short at 
each end just so the edge of the linoleum will be covered by the quarter- 
round moulding when this is replaced. Along the side walls, the linoleum 
should not be placed tight against the baseboard, but just as at the ends, 
a space of 34 to y 2 inch wide should be left. The edges of the linoleum at 
the seams, however, should be butted tightly against each other. 

37 



Laid in this manner, the linoleum will have an opportunity to expand 
underneath the edge of the quarter-round moulding. In replacing the 
quarter-round, do not fasten it down tight against the surface of the 
linoleum. The quarter-round must not bind the material at any point, 
but should be nailed to the baseboard in such manner as to permit the 
lifting out of the linoleum easily should retrimming become necessary. 

Should a buckle or air bubble develop in the linoleum, it must be smoothed 
out, and the edge of the linoleum under the floor moulding cut back a 
trifle. Do not put any brads in the linoleum during the expansion period. 

Care must be taken to fit the linoleum neatly around 
radiators, waste pipes, doorways, wall projections, 
etc. Where possible, the gas stove, kitchen range, 
and other movable equipment should be disconnected 
and linoleum laid under it. 

In many cases it will be found that it is not necessary 

m to fasten linoleum to the floor at all, when it has 

been laid under the quarter-round moulding at the sides and ends. The 

moulding itself will be all that is required to hold the material in place. 

Where it becomes necessary, however, to fasten the linoleum to wood 
floors, use No. 18, 24-inch, wire brads. Never use carpet tacks. The 
brads should be set in }4 to % inch from the edge and should be spaced 
about four inches apart along the edges and three inches apart on seams. 
The brads should be driven down until the heads are lost in the surface 
of the linoleum. 

DIRECTLY ON CONCRETE FLOORS 
The only way to fasten linoleum to concrete in your laundry, entry-way, 
bathroom or on any other concrete floor is by means of paste and water- 
proof cement. We strongly recommend that you have your merchant do 
this for you, using the felt underlayer, previously described, for this is 
the only way to insure thoroughly satisfactory results. But if you should 
decide to lay the material yourself, follow these directions carefully: 

No concrete floor can be considered absolutely dry 
in much less than three to four months after con- 
struction, depending upon the season, weather, and other conditions. 
Moisture in the floor will inevitably harm the linoleum. It is absolutely 
essential, therefore, that the linoleum be not laid until the concrete has 
had time to season and dry thoroughly. 

When linoleum is laid over concrete in the manner 

described here, it is not necessary to allow for 

expansion, as the fabric cannot expand after it is 

pasted down. The linoleum should be cut to fit tightly at each end, and 

around all projections or pipes. 

38 



The method of laying linoleum over a concrete floor 
is similar to the final operation of laying linoleum 
over felt, as described on pages 36-37. Use Armstrong's 
Linoleum Paste (non-waterproof) for pasting the center of the linoleum 
strips to the concrete, and Nonpareil Linoleum Waterproof Cement for 
gluing the edges and seams to the concrete floor, so as to prevent water 
from getting underneath the fabric. You can secure the necessary paste 
and cement from your merchant. 

After removing all dirt and dust, apply Armstrong's Linoleum Paste to the 
concrete floor with a wide brush, to within four to six inches of each side 
and end of the linoleum strip, which space is left bare for the later appli- 
cation of the cement. Put the width of linoleum in place and roll it out 
at once, before the paste dries. Repeat the same operation with the suc- 
ceeding strips of linoleum, butting the edges of the strips together tightly. 
Trim the ends to fit snugly against the wall. Then lift the edges of the 
strips of linoleum along the sides and ends and apply Nonpareil Linoleum 
Waterproof Cement with a paint brush to the concrete floor as far back 
as the paste will permit. Remove any cement that gets on the surface 
at once with alcohol. Finally, roll the linoleum with an iron roller (if 
possible) to insure perfect adhesion. 

Weights, such as pressed brick, sand bags or other heavy objects, should 
then be placed along all seams and edges, and allowed to remain for not less 
than twenty-four hours. Linoleum should never be laid over concrete floors 
in basements, unless the concrete has first been thoroughly water-proofed. 

HOW TO CARE FOR LINOLEUM 

In Europe, where linoleum is used extensively for bedrooms, dining-rooms, 
living-rooms, etc., housewives take especial pride in caring for and polish- 
ing the material so that their floors always look bright and attractive. 
Reasonable care and proper treatment will add greatly to the appearance 
and the life of your linoleum floor. 

As it does not catch dirt readily, sweeping linoleum 
;um is an easy task. Going over it once a day with an 
oil mop will usually keep it bright and clean. 

When washing is necessary, use a mild soap and tepid water — not hot. 
Wash about a yard at a time, rinse it with clear water, and then dry it 
thoroughly. When washing or mopping your linoleum, never "flood " the 
surface with water. 

Contrary to the idea of some housewives, certain advertised washing 
powders and scouring soaps should never be used on linoleum, as they 
contain caustic or alkali, which eat into the surface and destroy the colors. 

39 



A good rule is not to use soda, lye, potash, strong soaps or powders of any- 
kind. A good mild soap is all that is necessary. 

Your linoleum will last longer, and the brightness 
Polishing Linoleum °f tne colors will be retained and renewed if you go 
over the surface every five or six weeks with some good floor wax or 
polish, such as "Johnson's Prepared Wax," "Old English Wax" or any 
other good floor wax. A good home-made polish is easily prepared by 
dissolving under slow heat equal parts by weight of beeswax and turpen- 
tine. Care must be taken to prevent the mixture from taking fire while 
preparing it. When cool, take a little on a cloth and rub it into the lino- 
leum thoroughly, especially at the points of greatest wear. Do not use 
too much polish of any kind, but rub it in well. It is very easy to keep 
linoleum clean that is waxed and polished occasionally. 

The castors ordinarily used are apt to cut into the 
Heavy Furniture linoleum if the furniture is heavy. Therefore, it is 
on Linoleum best to substitute glass or metal shoes. These sliding 

shoes have a wide bearing surface and no rough edges. They are made in 
several sizes, have a similar shank to that on a regular castor, and will fit 
the same sockets. On chairs, rubber tips will answer the same purpose. 
Always lay a piece of carpet on the floor, or a board, when moving very 
heavy furniture, to prevent marring the surface of the linoleum. 




40 





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Reception room in a fine residence in Europe. The linoleum used is buff and black, with a dark plain border 





A European hall. The linoleum floor is a subdued pattern 
in greens and black 



Children's room in a private residence on the Continent. The 
linoleum is a soft pale green and brown 




A library in Europe, showing an effective use of a small linoleum pattern, with a plain linoleum border 




Reception room in a European residence. The linoleum is gray and black 




Master's bedroom in an aristocratic mansion in Europe. Note the perfect fitness of the linoleum floor in the general scheme 




Child's bedroom in a villa in Switzerland. The delicate pattern of the linoleum is indistinguishable in the photograph 




An enclosed porch facing the garden of a residence in Europe. The linoleum is an unusual design in two tones of blue 




Hall in a European residence, with a quiet, subdued linoleum pattern on the floor 



I f- C. 



THE ART of 
HOME FURNISftING 
and DECORATION 

hy 
Frank Alvah Parsons 

BBSS 













760 




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